


"...I would be completely worthless."

by chiiya



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-15
Updated: 2017-02-10
Packaged: 2018-07-24 05:08:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 13,828
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7495041
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chiiya/pseuds/chiiya
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Shh, that doesn't matter but--" Oikawa said with a sinister look in his eyes and placed his hands on the other boy’s arms, "I could help you..."</p><p>"But how--" Kageyama tried to say something once again but Oikawa silenced him by placing his finger on Tobio's lips.</p><p>"Let's make a deal, Tobio-chan~"</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I

**Author's Note:**

> I would like to thank my amazing beta reader eleasofia for her help, tips and the time she devoted to me.  
> Go check out her [fics](http://archiveofourown.org/users/eleasofia/pseuds/eleasofia) and her [tumblr](http://kagejamas.tumblr.com/)!

1.

26:24 - the referee announced the end of the match with a loud whistle. Tōkai University beat Waseda University 2:0 for the first time since 1998. After a moment of figuring out what actually had happened, the winners on the court went wild. They were screaming from the top of their lungs in excitement, pulling each other in tight embraces and running all over the place like they hadn’t been terribly exhausted just a second ago. Form the back of the stands Oikawa could even see the coach wiping her tears away quickly to avoid ruining her make-up.

Somehow, the sight of his future opponents feeling such great joy didn't annoy him.

"I guess I'm a little bit more mature now than I was in high school," he chuckled to himself texting Iwaizumi the result of the match.

Three years ago victory had been the only thing that mattered to him. He had devoted himself completely to the sport and left behind everything that wasn't necessary to win. He had been blind with ambition, blinded by wishing to become an ultimate weapon that can bring every team to the top. That overwhelming greed had almost destroyed him. 

His own teammates had soon been perceived by him as a threat to his career, so he had decided to not let them evolve anymore. He had almost lost everyone's trust with his lunatic behaviour. If his friends hadn't been around to slap him back to reality, he probably would’ve entirely drowned in this madness.

However, this all was in the past now. Since he had left Miyagi and forgotten about his high school days, he had started to like watching two different teams playing a good match. Today he had even cheered for Tōkai University because they had played incredibly well and had deserved to win the match.

The only thing that still somehow bothered him was that he hadn't tried to get rid of those negative feelings earlier. If he had just done this back in Kitagawa Daiichi, he could have avoided all the trouble with Ushiwaka and Tob—

Oikawa suddenly stopped his chain of thoughts in mid-sentence when he caught a glimpse of a raven-haired boy passing by his seat on the stands. He rapidly turned his head and froze not believing his own eyes. After all these years he actually met him again. He had thought that they would never run into each other again since the only connection between them was gone. 

Adrenaline started pumping in his veins, his breath quickened and his vision got blurry. Without much thinking Oikawa stood up and broke into run, chasing after his old rival. He had no idea what had gotten into him. Why was he getting all worked up over that brat, especially now that they had nothing to talk about anymore?

He tried to catch Kageyama before he would exit the gym. Oikawa knew that the moment his former kōhai would take a step outside the building, he would lose him in the crowd for sure. He was desperate to stop him but he couldn't think of anything...

"TOBIO!!!!!" a loud cry echoed through the hall, catching everyone's attention. He could feel his cheeks burn from embarrassment, but right now wasn't the time to care about it. His simple method had worked out fairly well and Kageyama stopped in his tracks, slowly turning around.

"O-oikawa-san?"

Oikawa approached the other quickly, still hoping for his heartbeat to calm down somehow. He took a deep breath before he spoke. "Do you have a moment? I need to talk to you."

Kageyama was unsure what Oikawa wanted from him but eventually he cautiously nodded nevertheless.

"Good. Let's go outside then."

When they got away from the crowd Oikawa decided to head to the nearby park. They walked in silence, neither of them willing to start a conversation. When both men reached the closest bench in the park Oikawa sat down waiting for the other to do the same. 

"So..." Kageyama finally broke the awkward silence, "What do you want from me?"

Oikawa opted for looking off into the distance, simply not wanting to meet those innocent dark eyes coloured like the night sky.

"Are those rumours true?" he asked bluntly.

Kageyama arched his eyebrows in question.

"I'm asking about volleyball. Is it true that you quit?" Oikawa continued.

Kageyama let out a silent "oh" before the usual deep frown showed up on his face. "I-" he started, not daring to look at Oikawa and clearly uncomfortable with the topic, "I, yes. I-i mean, yes, I quit. At the end of my second year."

Oikawa sighed. He had already known the answer because he had met Karasuno’s ex-captain at the university library once. Since both of them had been sick and tired of studying they had decided to have a little chat about their current and previous teams. 

The news about the genius setter had shocked him. At first he had thought that Sawamura had just been messing with him. However, when he had visited Miyagi he had gone to see one of Karasuno’s practice matches and on the court he had recognized Chibi-chan and some other players but Kageyama Tobio had been nowhere to be found.

"Why did you quit?" he asked another question, more gently now.

"Why do you need to know?"

"You don't answer a question with question, Tobio-chan. You are still lacking manners I see."

Kageyama grunted in displeasure. "I had reasons..." he muttered almost inaudibly and swiftly stood up, "I'm sorry, Oikawa-san, but I need to go now. It was nice to see you." 

It could’ve been his imagination but Oikawa thought that he had heard a faint "I guess" under Tobio's breath at the end of his sentence. However, before he could even respond with something, Kageyama had already ran off and was slowly disappearing from his sight.

Oikawa sighted in frustration.

Tobio maybe was stubborn but that definitely wouldn’t stop Oikawa from trying to persuade him to getting back to volleyball. This brat should better not just abandon the gift that he had been given.


	2. II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank my amazing beta reader [eleasofia](http://archiveofourown.org/users/eleasofia/pseuds/eleasofia) for her invaluable help.

2.

Kageyama unlocked the door to his flat and let himself in, hoping his flatmate was still absent. He really wasn't in the mood to talk. The whole conversation with his former senpai had made him even grumpier than he was usually. Unfortunately, before he stepped in the living area he could already hear enthusiastic greetings.

"Welcome back Kageyama-kun! How was the match?"

The petite blonde stuck her head out from the kitchen with big smile on her face.

"It was good. Tōkai University won," he replied shortly, passing her by and walking straight to the fridge, "Do we have some left-overs from the lunch, Yacchan? I'm starving."

"Uh, I think there's some mackerel left. On the first shelf. Not there. Behind the eggplant," she guided him while making tea.   
"So..." she continued after a moment, "Did you enjoy the match? Did those players impress you? Did their team--"

"Yachi," Kageyama cut off the coming flood of questions, "The game was pleasant to watch but that's all. I'm not going to get back to playing. That was my final decision and I won't change it."

She puckered up her mouth. He knew that she wasn't content with this kind of answer. However, he had made up his mind and even her constant persuading wouldn't change his decision. 

"Fine," she murmured and took their mugs to place them on the coffee table in front of the couch, "Hurry up and reheat your food. I’ll start the movie soon."

Kageyama got back to his food. He was relieved that she had agreed to drop the topic, for now at least.

Since Yachi had joined Karasuno’s volleyball team as a manager she had always been around the younger setter. She had been throwing him balls to toss at practice, had been helping him with studying and she had even been in charge of splitting him and Hinata up when they had fought. 

As the time had gone on, he had found himself hanging out with her more and more; at the begging only at school, but later also after classes. Thanks to Hinata Yachi had become more passionate with everything she was doing and made her open up a little in general. Kageyama, on the other hand, liked listening to her because he could learn plenty of things in this way.

When he had dropped out of volleyball Yachi had been the first person to help him pull himself together again. She had convinced him to transfer to a college prep class and he had followed her advice. However, as a result he had spent his whole third year in high school trying to catch up on material and choosing the right courses to apply to at university. It wasn't a big surprise for anyone that he had eventually decided on Physical Education although he had known that it wasn’t going to be piece of cake.

When both, him and Yachi, had gotten accepted into universities in Tokyo, they had agreed to rent an apartment together to save money. The beginning of their living together had been awkward as hell for them but soon enough there hadn’t been any time to worry about such trivial things anymore. Both of them were quite busy with their studies which was making their usual movies nights rather rare events.

"So what are we watching today?" Kageyama asked.

"The Others."

Kageyama shot her a glare. "Are you fucking kidding me?! Do you think I forgot how you freaked out after "The Omen"?! You said you were seeing those lines in some photos for weeks and whenever you saw a kid--"

"Kageyama, you're exaggerating! I wasn't acting that crazy!" Yachi said clearly embarrassed and with a pout.

"Okay, okay, fine. But I still think you shouldn't watch horror movies..."

"I know, but Yamaguchi-kun wants to see "Lights Out" in the cinema soon and I need to--"

"...bulid a tolerance for horror movies, am I right?" Kageyama finished her sentence.

Yachi looked at him in surprise. "Am I imaging things or are you perhaps getting better at reading people, Kageyama-kun?"

It was Tobio's turn to get embarrassed now. "You know, I don't, ugh... I mean, it was so obvious that anyone could have guessed that," he explained, "I'm still having trouble with social interaction, even today when I met Oikawa-san--"

"You met Oikawa-san?!" Yachi almost jumped in shock, "Why didn't you tell me sooner?! Where did you meet him? When was it? What--"

"Yachi!" Kageyama interrupted her before she could bombard him with a billion of questions, "I met him today after the match. I was leaving the gym when he called me." 

"I see. But what did he want?"

Kageyama groaned in annoyance. "Who knows?! I didn't really understand what he wanted from me. Let's get back to the movie."

"But..." Yachi definitely wanted to get some more out of him but Kageyama interrupted her once again.

"Shhh, I'm watching."

She finally quieted down and turned her head to face the TV as well. They watched the whole movie in silence. When the closing credits appeared Kageyama turned the TV off and directed his attention back to his flatmate. Yachi was sleeping soundly in a sitting position, snoring softly now and then. He carefully laid her body down on the couch and covered her with a blanket. Hopefully she wouldn't remember what they had been talking about in the morning.


	3. III

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank my amazing beta reader [eleasofia](http://archiveofourown.org/users/eleasofia/pseuds/eleasofia) for her invaluable help.

3.

"Okay Iwa-chan, think about it. Who else might be still in touch with Tobio-chan or at least have his phone number?" Oikawa said, strolling from one end of the room to the other, nervously chewing on his lip.

"I don't know... We checked Kindaichi, Kunimi, almost all players from Karasuno, even their coach... We don't have many links to get to him..." Iwaizumi closed his eyes already sore from scrolling through social media where he was looking for anyone who could help them, "I think you should give up and wait till you bump into him at another match or something..."

"Their coach..." Oikawa muttered to himself, "Coach, hmm, maybe his teachers would know... But I would need to go to Miyagi to check this... There must be someone else..."

"Oi, Shittykawa, you're acting like a pro stalker right now," Iwaizumi joked and threw a pillow at his friend, "Seriously, give up because--"

Oikawa froze in place. "Managers," he uttered fervently, "We haven't asked Karasuno’s managers yet! Iwa-chan, quick, what was the name of that black-haired beauty with glasses?"

"How should I know that?" Iwaizumi replied irritated, "You were the one who was interested in her so you should know that!"

"But she completely ignored me and I didn't get to know her name!" Oikawa almost yelled.

"The just ask Sawamura, idiot!" Iwaizumi shouted back and smacked his friend’s head.

"Ouch!" Oikawa exclaimed and started to massage the aching area, "Calm down, Iwa-chan. Are you having problems with controlling you anger again?"

Iwaizumi growled warily. He really wanted to help his friend, but his patience had its limits. They had already spent three evenings like this, texting a bunch of people, waiting for their response, explaining why they needed to contact Kageyama and what they wanted from him and at the end, getting nothing in return. It was truly frustrating.

"But actually..." Oikawa said with a more serious tone, "That's a good idea. Sawamura kind of understands the situation and if he asks Glasses-chan about Tobio, she will definitely tell him anything she knows."

He looked at his phone to check the time. It was 1 a.m. "Well, it's already pretty late so I'll text him tomorrow. For now, you're free Iwa-chan. Thanks for your help!" he chirped cheerfully and patted his ace on the back.

With a quiet "finally" Iwaizumi gathered his stuff and left Oikawa's place. He was terribly tired and he wanted nothing more than taking a hot shower and hitting his soft bed.

\---

Oikawa couldn't believe his luck. He'd only texted Sawamura this morning and just before lunch he already had Tobio's address. Technology was surely blessing!

Apparently, his target turned out to be living with Karasuno’s other former manager, which was a surprise. Little Tobio-chan was living under one roof with a girl! It was so unbelievable, he certainly needed to see this with his own two eyes.

Just after his classes had ended, he rushed to Kageyama’s apartment, hoping he would be able to meet his girlfriend. He couldn't recall seeing two Karasuno managers but he did remember that some of Aoba Johsai’s players had been chatting about a cute blonde from Karasuno and they probably hadn't meant that tall middle blocker with glasses.

"So Tobio likes cute girls... Who would have guessed..." he murmured to himself while entering the block in which Kageyama lived in.

Finding the right apartment didn't take him too long. Oikawa quickly fixed his hair, wore his brightest smile and knocked on the door two times. After a second of silence he could hear muffled curses coming from the flat, followed by a loud bang and a panicked voice shouting, "Oh my god, Kageyama-kun, are you okay?! Ugh, don't move, I will answer the door."

Shortly after that he heard the sound of the door being unlocked. In front of him was standing a petite blonde with messy hair and in pyjamas with a pastel pink star pattern. There weren’t any words that could’ve described how adorable she looked, although she was wearing a rather untypical outfit for a Thursday afternoon.

"Um, hello-" Oikawa started after he found his voice again, "My name is--"

"OIKAWA-SAN!!!!"

Well, this cute girl apparently knew him and had an even louder voice than her boyfriend.

"Yes, you're right--" he tried to continue but then he felt a firm grip on the front of his shirt, suddenly facing a way more familiar face, giving him his typical scowl.

"What are you doing here?" Kageyama snapped at him trying his best to look intimidating despite the fact he wasn't wearing any pants.

"D-Did I interrupt you in something,  _love-birds_ ?" Oikawa joked, hoping Tobio would get embarrassed and loosen the grip on him. 

To his dismay, the other boy only narrowed his eyes. "Don't change the subject. What are you doing here?"

Oikawa sighed. "Okay Tobio-chan, I wanted to be nice but you’re giving me no other choice," Oikawa said in a rather serious tone of voice, "I heard you're going to fail some of your classes, aren't you?”

The girl who was still standing behind Kageyama gasped and Kageyama himself paled and finally let go of him. The mere mention of his grades quickly turned the furious wolf into a lost sheep.

"How did you--" he started but Oikawa cut him off quickly.

"Shh, that doesn't matter but--" Oikawa said with a  sinister look in his eyes and placed his hands on the other boy’s arms, "I could help you..."

"But how--" Kageyama tried to say something once again but Oikawa silenced him by placing his finger on his Tobio's lips.

"Let's make a deal, Tobio-chan~"

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all those comments and kudos <3 I'm so happy that someone actually likes my fic ^^


	4. IV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank my amazing beta reader [eleasofia](http://archiveofourown.org/users/eleasofia/pseuds/eleasofia) for her invaluable help.

4.

Kageyama woke up in the middle of the night covered in a cold sweat; his arms were shaking slightly before he broke into inconsolable sobs.

He had dreamt about it again.

Tobio clenched his teeth as an attempt to stop tears from falling and tried to settle down his breathing but the piercing ache in his chest didn't seem to dull, not even a little bit.

Annoyed, he started pulling his hair in frustration; he wasn't a little kid anymore, he couldn't spend every night crying whenever his mind decided to recall those memories. He really hated it, he really hated himself...

"Why am I so weak..." he whispered into his pillow and closed his eyes, trying to fall asleep once again.

After all, he needed to wake up early in morning as long as he didn't want to hear Oikawa's complaining about him being late.

\---

Yachi was busy preparing a bentō when she heard an unexpected alarm clock going off in Kageyama's room. Already yawning for the thousands time this morning, she got back to making octopus sausages without a second thought about her roommate being up this early.

She was taking mental notes so that she wouldn’t forget to text Yamaguchi about the movie, finish an essay during her lunch break, go grocery shopping after classes, make a dentist appointment and-

"Yo, Yacchan," Kageyama suddenly stormed out of his room making her jump in surprise, "I'm off. Please buy me some milk if you can; volleyball practice ends around 10 p.m. and everything will be closed by then," he said while putting his shoes on, already carrying a sports bag on one shoulder instead of his usual backpack.

"Um, no problem, Kageyama-kun..." Yachi responded a little bit confused. Although she wasn’t able to immediately tell what it was, she felt like something was weird...

"Thanks!" he exclaimed already on the stairs, having left without even bothering to close the door.

"Oh my," she sighted annoyed while closing the door and going back to making her bentō, "When will he learn to close the door? What if I wasn't home? Someday we are going to get robbed for sure..."

Right when she was about to leave, she froze in the place, finally realizing it, "Wait, did he say volleyball practice?!"

\---

Kageyama stood in front of the library, desperately trying to catch his breath before entering the building. He had run all the way, which actually wasn't that long, but he could feel his bangs sticking to his sweaty forehead. He really was out of shape.

"Ugh, Tobio, you could’ve at least showered after your morning jog!" he heard a familiar voice just behind him and Kageyama turned his head rapidly to face his new tutor.

"Good morning, Oikawa-san," he bowed and greeted him politely, "I'm sorry but I forgot to bring the book for biomechanics-"

"You won't need it today," Oikawa replied checking something on his phone, "I just found another teacher who will help you with biomechanics and biochemistry. You will meet him tomorrow."

"Okay," Kageyama confirmed nodding his head before he entered the library with Oikawa following him closely.

They headed to a room on the first floor which was one of the studying areas. Oikawa liked this place quite a lot because the students were allowed to talk to each other as long as they weren't too loud.

After they chose a desk to sit down at, Oikawa broke the silence, "So, when exactly are your exams and stuff?"

Kageyama frowned before answering, "Uh, next week I have an oral exam in pedagogy on Monday, then there’s the biochemistry exam on Wednesday and a psychology project that’s due Friday. But the following week there’s only the biomechanics exam on Monday.”

"I see," Oikawa hummed while stroking his chin, "Well, we'll start with pedagogy and some practice on your conversation skills today and via skype I'll give you some advice on how to start the project. Try to write something every night before you go to sleep and send it to me so that I can correct eventual mistakes. The books you found are good sources to work with, so I'll just send you links to a website or two which might be helpful for writing the conclusion."

After he had finished his short monologue, he stared off into the distance, clearly thinking about something else.

"Um, Oikawa-san? Is everything okay?" Kageyama tried to get his attention back.

"Yeah, sorry I spaced out," he replied while taking out his laptop out of his bag, "I'll think some questions up for you now and you do a quick revision."

 

After three hours in the library, Kageyama needed to go because his classes had already started. They had done quite a lot this morning, but Tobio still had to spend some more time on individual studying; not only for pedagogy but also for biochemistry and biomechanics. Iwaizumi could help him understand to parts of material, but if he wanted to pass, he would definitely need to cram for those exams.

Oikawa stretched himself with a loud yawn just when he saw his team ace entering the study room.

"Hello~" he greeted him cheerfully, patting the chair next to him, "Did you survive your test this morning?"

"Well, I did; somehow at least," Iwaizumi sat down and pulled out his water bottle to take a few sips, "But I heard you were absent on your important test today."

Oikawa made a grimace and took a deep breath, "Yeah, I was busy with tutoring Tobio-chan."

"Can’t you do that when both of you have some free time? I don't want to hear that you're drowning in work and stuff like that later."

"I know, I know," he replied nonchalantly, "But you're still free tomorrow afternoon, right?"

"Yeah," Iwaizumi confirmed, "By the way, did you tell the team captain about him?"

"Not yet, but he shouldn't have problem with that."

Iwaizumi raised his eyebrow and looked at him sceptically, "Whatever, by the way, there is one thing that bothers me; how exactly did you know that Kageyama had trouble with passing his classes?"

Oikawa chucked lightly at the question. "Well, I didn't," he said and his smile widened at his friend’s surprised expression, "I played it by ear. Tobio has always been hopeless when it comes to with academics, so I just gave it a shot and it worked quite well."

He winked playfully, clearly pleased with himself.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all those comments and kudos ^^.   
> If you want to talk to me you can find me [here](http://bishounen-bishoujo-fever.tumblr.com/).
> 
> Have a nice day!


	5. V

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank my amazing beta reader [eleasofia](http://archiveofourown.org/users/eleasofia/pseuds/eleasofia) for her invaluable help.

Kageyama got off the bus and adjusted the bag’s strap on his shoulder, still not able to believe that he had actually decided to come _here._

He had sworn that he’d never be on a team again but Oikawa's offer had been irresistible. The reason he eventually had agreed on the terms was simply that he was really desperate to pass his classes. Repeating the year would be the worst thing that could happen to him right now.

Him family wasn't wealthy; the allowance Tobio got from his parents barely covered the rent and bills so any extra expenses were out of question. A part-time job wasn’t an option either; he often had classes from early in the morning till the very evening and after he got home he had to study. He wasn't the brightest after all, so he needed to work twice as hard as anyone else to keep up with the subject matter and the assignments they were given.

With Oikawa's help maybe he would make it, maybe he would--

"Oi, Karasuno's setter! What's up? What are you doing here?" a loud yell interrupted him in his thoughts.

Kageyama turned towards the direction from where the voice had come and raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Johzenji's captain?" he said, unable to hide the shock in his words, "Um, hello, I've never thought I would meet you here..."

"What? Is it such a big surprise that someone like me got into university?" the male tried to look offended but he grinned widely when he noticed Tobio's embarrassment, "Ya know what they say... 'Never judge a book by its cover' .. or something like that."

"Stop talking nonsense, Terushima," someone cut in harshly, "You hardly made it because you were partying all the time instead of studying for the entrance exams."

The new person approached them and smiled at Kageyama, "Yo, Karasuno's setter, how is it going?"

Now Tobio were lost for words for a good few seconds before he could reply, "Ah, good afternoon, Kuroo-san, um, it's going well..."

But obviously it wasn't the truth.

Seeing the opponents he had faced in his high-school days made him feel uneasy; his mind was full of mixed feelings he couldn't understand. Something like joy or excitement were fought down by anxiety and panic; he wasn't sure which feeling he could trust right now, his intuition was at a loss.

"Oooh, you know him too?" Terushima asked astonished, "Ahh, I forgot you guys went to nationals."

"Yeah, but we actually met much earlier than that," Kuroo responded, putting his hands in his pockets, "So, where's Chibi-chan? Don't tell me that the freak duo went separate ways."

"Uh, actually we did..." Kageyama muttered quietly, hoping that Kuroo wouldn't ask for the reason.

"Oh, what a shame!" Terushima interjected clearly unhappy with the answer, "I was hoping to see that quick of yours up close again and you're telling me it won't be possible! I can't believe it!"

Tobio felt his stomach sink again at the mention of his and Hinata's quick.

After he had quit volleyball, Hinata had been left alone without a setter matching his skills. In his third year, Karasuno’s volleyball team hadn't made it to nationals and everyone had been chagrined. Even though they all had accepted his decision back then, some people in fact had been blaming him for their failure and claiming he had ruined the great opportunity for his teammates to be scouted during matches in Tokyo.

Kageyama gritted his teeth. _I hope Hinata's career didn't end in high-school..._

After around ten minutes of friendly conversation, Kuroo checked his phone and clicked his tongue evidently irritated.

"Oi, Terushima, I just got a threat from our captain that if we don't show up in five minutes, we're going to be kicked out of the club."

Terushima sighed dramatically. "Does he always need to be like this? I didn't even get to eat my lunch today..." he complained, taking out some yakisoba bread from his bag and immediately taking a huge bite.

Kageyama was somewhat relieved that they were leaving now because answering all those questions about his former teammates was kind of troublesome, now that he had no idea what they were doing at the moment.

"We gotta leave now Kageyama; in which direction are you going?" Kuroo asked.

"Um, to the University of Tokyo's Gym."

Both males froze at these words and looked at him in surprise. Tobio had no idea what was going on; had he said something wrong?

"You're heading to _our_ gym?" Terushima blurted out, his mouth still full of food.

_What?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! 
> 
> I still struggle with writing longer chapters but this one was embarrassingly short, I'm sorry ^^"


	6. VI

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank my amazing beta reader [eleasofia](http://archiveofourown.org/users/eleasofia/pseuds/eleasofia) for her invaluable help.

"Oh my God! Tooru, you're such a life saver!!!", said Nomura Satoshi, the volleyball team captain and vigorously shook Oikawa's hands, "You have no idea how happy I'm to have this kid on our team, we needed a breath of fresh air here!"

Oikawa smirked towards Iwaizumi looking at him meaningfully.

“ _Told you he would be fine with this,”_ his expression said.

Iwaizumi only rolled his eyes at that triumphant look and got back to practicing his serves.  

Their captain was a pretty laid-back guy but that didn’t change that Oikawa's actions were against the rules. Only students from the University of Tokyo could use the gym and therefore any outsiders’ presence was forbidden. 

And Kageyama was attending the University of Tsukuba.

If anyone denounced them, it would be a catastrophe. In the worst case, the provost might cut off the club’s budget and suspend the culprits; which meant him, Oikawa and Nomura probably. 

“Ah, I just happened to know someone suitable for this position,” Oikawa said, smiling brightly, “He should be here soon.”

“I hope so!” the captain also beamed. “You know how much I despise latecomers,” he added in a low tone that sent chills down Oikawa’s spine.

After all Nomura, like pretty much every other person, had a scary side that wasn’t exposed too often. His main pet peeve was being tardiness; the players who were unpunctual better always had a really good excuse.

Now, Kageyama was already 30 minutes late and Oikawa was getting visibly annoyed. 

“ _What if he backed out? I thought he could keep a promise,”_ Iwaizumi worried and sent another ball over the net to the other end of the court.

“ _Where the hell he is?”_

Chewing nervously on his lip he continued serving the balls, glancing now and then towards the entrance.  

_\---_

During a break Oikawa finally could excuse himself and head to the locker room to check his phone. He was incredibly pissed; Kageyama might be lacking social skills but he could at least have enough manners to not be late to his first meeting with the team.

When he was unlocking his locker, the door to the room opened up swiftly with three males on the doorstep. 

“Oikawa!” Kuroo exclaimed obviously surprised by the unexpected sight, “What are you doing here, the practice has already started.”

“I know,” he replied coldly to the rather stupid question. “So can you tell me why the three of you only arrived just now?” Oikawa asked, folding his arms in front of his chest. 

Kuroo opened his mouth to answer but midway through he decided that it would be safer to just offer an apologetic smile and rush to the court. 

When they all were done with changing, Kuroo and Terushima hurried to the door with Kageyama following them closely when Oikawa firmly yanked at the hem of his t-shirt. 

The sudden move coming from the bench where Oikawa was sitting stopped Tobio in his tracks and made him lose his balance which resulted in Kageyama falling backwards and landing hard on Oikawa, almost throwing both of them off the bench. 

“What the heck?!” he yelled directly into Tobio’s ear. 

Kageyama turned his head towards Oikawa to meet an outraged expression. 

“You pulled my t-shirt!” Tobio shouted back defending himself. 

Oikawa clicked his tongue. “Well, yes, but I didn’t expect you to be that clumsy.” he replied, pushing the boy off his lap, “Get away from me with your bony ass!”

Kageyama looked at him offended. “With a pleasure,” he said harshly and then stood up, deliberately throwing Oikawa off the bench in the process. 

Oikawa landed with a loud bang on the floor and immediately shot Kageyama a glare. “I don’t know if you are worth my efforts, you brat...” he murmured almost inaudibly under his breath and quickly got up from the ground, “I’m gonna introduce you to the team now so behave yourself.”

Tobio only nodded in response, refusing to look in Oikawa’s direction. 

Their small quarrel had proven him how childish they still were; years had passed but their attitudes towards each other had hardly changed. On one hand, it was truly annoying but on the other hand, it felt strangely refreshing and yet familiar. With this in mind Oikawa stepped onto the court, looking back once to check whether the boy behind him was following him.

\---

Kageyama felt his whole body tense up at the moment he entered the court. 

It was completely different from watching volleyball on TV or from the stands in comfortable distance. However, right now wasn’t the time for chickening out; he needed to get a grip on himself. 

The familiar smell of sweat mixed with air salonpas filled up his nostrils. It felt nice but again the nostalgic feelings ignited by anything related to volleyball appeared collaterally with the anxious ones.

Nervously, Tobio looked scanned the room to check out his new team. Most of the players were about Oikawa’s or Kuroo’s height or even taller. Some of them were also incredibly ripped and Kageyama wondered how powerful their spikes or serves would be. 

Eventually, his glance reached Iwaizumi who gracefully, but at the same time with the strength of a monster, served the ball to the other end of the court. When he noticed that Kageyama was staring, he smiled at him gently and waved to greet him. 

Tobio waved back before Oikawa yanked at his shirt again to get his attention. 

“Come on, Tobio, you need to meet our captain.”

When they reached the group of players visibly busy with discussing the line-up, Oikawa spoke loudly into their direction.

“Nomura-san, I brought our new member. He apparently got lost because this part of the city is unfamiliar to him,” he lied smoothly.

“Good job, Tooru!” the male in the middle exclaimed and rushed towards them, “Nice to me you, Kageyama-san, I’m Nomura Satoshi. Can I call you by your given name?” He shook Kageyama’s hand and before he could even reply, Nomura continued, “I’m so happy to have you here! Let me introduce you to the guys. Guuuuuuys!!!”

The whole team turned their heads towards their captain.

“Gather up! Quickly! I have something to announce!”

As soon as everyone in the gym had gathered around them, Nomura waited another moment until all whispers quietened.

“As you know, for weeks we had an important position in our team empty because our dear friend Yuki had to leave us,” he stated with a dramatic tone, “But fear no more, today, someone is going to take her place. Please meet our new manager, Kageyama Tobio!” 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the kind comments and kudos ^^ 
> 
> Have a nice day~


	7. VII

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank my amazing beta reader [eleasofia](http://archiveofourown.org/users/eleasofia/pseuds/eleasofia) for her invaluable help.

Kageyama listened to Iwaizumi’s explanation for the third time in a row and still didn’t get how it worked. He was stuck while he was trying to solve a problem where he had to find a moment of the applied force but it seemed like there were not enough parameters to find the answer. 

He scanned through the pages of his biomechanics book but nothing looked helpful. Groaning, Tobio started nervously chewing on the end of his pen when he felt a warm palm lightly ruffling his hair. 

“Let’s call it a day, Kageyama, I’ll just show you how to solve this and then we’re done. We better need to get going; you’ve already skipped two lectures today.”

With a soft smile Iwaizumi took the pen from Kageyama’s hand and started writing the equations, explaining step by step what he was doing.

“By the way,” he started when he finished the problem, “How did you like yesterday’s practice?” 

Tobio looked up at him in surprise. 

He hadn’t done much yesterday; all evening he had been just watching the players, learning their faces and names. It may have sounded easy but certainly it wasn’t; at the end of practice Nomura had even handed him files filled with garnered data about the team, like he hadn’t enough stuff to study.

Kageyama furrowed his brows; he didn’t want to complain, not after the first time, but lying to Iwaizumi didn’t feel right either. 

"It wasn’t bad,” he muttered quietly.

Iwaizumi chuckled at his brief reply, “It’s nice that you try to be polite, Kageyama, but you can be honest with me, you know.”

Tobio flushed in embarrassment when he noticed how easily his former senpai could read him. “O-okay,” he nodded simply and let his gaze fall on the desk where his notes were still scattered across the wooden surface. “It’s going to be tougher than I expected,” he stated, “I don’t know if I’ll manage to do both, my studies and the manager’s work, properly.” 

Iwaizumi sighed at the answer and ran his fingers through his hair; he could tell Kageyama hadn’t told him the whole truth. However, instead of pushing him further he opted for reassuring smile, “Being a manager isn’t that scary, you’ll get used to it quickly and it shouldn’t interfere with your studies,” he assured him, “But I bet your girlfriend has already told you that.” 

Kageyama cocked his head rapidly and gave Iwaizumi a confused look. “M-my what?!” he almost yelled.

Iwaizumi was startled by this reaction but nevertheless, he repeated himself once again and this time more slowly like he was explaining something extremely difficult, “Um, your girlfriend, Kageyama. The one who was your manager at Karasuno. You’re living with her now, remember?”

Tobio still didn’t seem to understand what the other was talking about but piece by piece he connected the facts and his inner bulb lighted up.

“Ahhh, Iwaizumi-san, you’re talking about my flat-mate - Yachi,” he spoke visibly relieved. “It’s true that we’re living together but we’re not like t-that. I mean we aren’t a thing, she’s just a friend,” he explained a little bit awkward.

Now Iwaizumi looked at him in surprise, “But when Oikawa paid you a visit, he found you dressed like he just interrupted you, you know, in s-something...” 

At those words, Kageyama immediately blushed and hid his face in his hands, “It’s not like that,” he groaned, “I was just changing because I’d spilled soup on my pants and Yachi was in her pyjamas because she’d been after all the all-nighers she’d pulled off to study. But when I heard Oikawa-san at the door I rushed without thinking, forgetting I wasn’t even dressed. It was such an embarrassing situation.”

Iwaizumi watched in awe how quickly the boy got frustrated. He didn’t recall ever seeing Kageyama like this so it was a whole new experience. He smiled at the sight in front of him and got up. 

“No need to worry about this, Kageyama,” he said a little too harshly. “But now I really need to go and so do you. See you later at practice!” he added and waved goodbye while he was already running off. 

\---

“How is it going with your article?” Kuroo asked and handed Oikawa a mug with the steam still rising from it. 

“Terribly,” Oikawa uttered baldly and took a sip from the mug, “Ugh! What the heck is this?! I told you I put sugar in my coffee, don’t give me that bitter shit again!” 

Kuroo just laughed at his reaction and got back to his own work. 

Both of them had been hired for a volleyball magazine; Oikawa had his own column with reviews about sports clothing and equipment while Kuroo was responsible for the layout. His job wasn’t an easy one but since Kenma was working with him they’d always managed to finish it long before the deadlines - unlike Oikawa. 

Right now, the said man was rubbing his eyes and relentlessly browsing producers’ websites in order to find some more information about a certain kind of knee supporters he had been writing about. He needed to finish his work before midnight,  if he only got a grip on himself, he would be done in 3-4 hours. 

However, he had to go to practice in less than an hour, which meant that there was no way he would be able to finish his work before the deadline. 

“You know, I can tell Nomura you’re sick today,” Kuroo suddenly spoke up like he had been reading Oikawa’s mind this whole time. 

Oikawa looked up at him clearly unhappy with this idea.

“...and I can take the keys to the gym so you can have some single practices later after you’re done with your work,” Kuroo added and smiled at the vigorous nod Oikawa gave him as an answer, “But please don’t overwork yourself this time. If Iwaizumi finds out that I let you in the Gym with no supervision, he will get extremely mad.”

Oikawa snorted in response, “Don’t worry, I’m already dead tired so I won’t.”

“If you say so...” Kuroo replied with hesitation; he was about to leave when something came to his mind, “By the way, you’re leaving our cute Manager-san alone today, you think he’ll be fine by himself on his second day?” he said with a teasing tone of voice.

“Iwa-chan will be there too,” Oikawa said calmly, “Besides, Tobio isn’t a kid anymore so he’ll be fine.”

“Oh, but what if some players start hitting on him, you know how it is with new managers..” 

Oikawa rolled his eyes. “They won’t,” he replied in a bored tone, hoping his teammate would already leave, “They are too busy drooling at the sight of the women’s swimming team.”

“True,” Kuroo laughed, “But what if I will...” 

Oikawa rose his head rapidly with a concerned look on his face. “Are you serious?” he asked cautiously.

“Why not?” Kuroo shrugged his arms. 

“Listen,” Oikawa took a deep breath before continuing. “I don’t think he has any experience with dating guys, I don’t even think he has one with girls...” he said unsure.

Oikawa was still kind of shocked because of the news he had received from Iwaizumi this afternoon; apparently Kageyama wasn’t in relationship with the girl he was living with. Iwaizumi, in addition to that, had sent him a detailed description of how Tobio had been furiously blushing at the relationship subject. That wasn’t typical for a grown-up man...

“So?” Kuroo spoke arching his eyebrow in question when Oikawa went silent for a moment. 

“Ah, What I meant,” Oikawa carried on, “I wonder if you are able to take things slow. If you scare him off, he might quit his position and run away.”

Kuroo sighed. “That’s what you’re worried about...” he scratched his chin, “For now, I may hold off with making a move, I’ll try to get to know him first..”

“Good, there’s no need to rush.” Oikawa smiled before adding, “Speaking of rush, you know practice starts in a few minutes?”

Kuroo’s eyes went wide before he threw some curses at his teammate and hurried out of the door.

  
  


 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for those kind comments and kudos <3


	8. VIII

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank my amazing beta reader [eleasofia](http://archiveofourown.org/users/eleasofia/pseuds/eleasofia) for her invaluable help.

**From: Kageyama Tobio  
Subject: (none)**

**I passed psychology class! Thank you for your help, Oikawa-san.**

Oikawa smiled at the text before typing.

**To: Kageyama Tobio  
Subject: Congratulations!**

**What grade?**

A moment passed before his phone vibrated again.

**From: Kageyama Tobio  
Subject: (none)**

**C.**

“ _You barely passed, you idiot!”_ Oikawa clenched his teeth, “ _And how was that even possible?! Because I’ve been personally correcting your essay every freaking night!”_

Oikawa was a bit irritated but happy; one thing less to worry about, which was a big thing because he had to admit - the last few days had been rather tough. For both of them.

Tobio had not only had about a week to prepare for his pedagogy and biochemistry exams but since he’d become a manager, he’d also had to commute to Todai practices from his university daily which took an hour long drive. Thankfully, his rides home were a lot shorter, so as soon as he’d get home, he had been able to continue working on his essay.

Oikawa, on the other hand, when he hadn’t been helping Kageyama with his studies, he’d tried to catch up on his own work. A few skipped classes had resulted in catastrophic backlogs and now he couldn't even complain to Iwaizumi how tragic his situation was. 

He rubbed his temples while trying to relax; part of the deal was done at least. Now, Iwaizumi only had to help Tobio to pass the biomechanics exam and everything would be back to normal. Well, normal but with the new manager in addition.

Leastwise, that was what Tooru was hoping for. 

He checked the time, “ _Where is Ren-chan with my energy drink? He promised me to sneak it for me into the library after his afternoon classes.”_ Oikawa groaned angrily because of his friend before deciding to check his facebook. He couldn’t focus on his work today, so many thoughts were occupying his mind that he barely managed to do anything. 

When the page loaded he noticed some notification but no new messages, he started scrolling down the dashboard. He passed by a few youtube links, some political discourses and his ex’s selfie when he saw a familiar face in the next photo.

“ _Chillin’ after a good work-out session,”_ the title said. The picture contained a sweaty black-haired male with his bangs pulled back, leaning on someone’s shoulder. He looked pretty exhausted sipping some juice through a straw with his eyes half-closed. Tooru couldn’t see his irides but he perfectly knew what colour they were; he recognized Tobio the moment the picture popped up on the page. However, what was more interesting - the photo looked like it had been taken with a front camera by the owner of that shoulder. Oikawa anxiously looked up who was the original poster of the picture just to see the worst possibility he had feared - Kuroo Tetsurou. 

\---

Kageyama observed Todai’s players from the side lines and wrote down some things on a clipboard with a pretty focused look on his face; they were practicing blocking today before they would play some sparring matches. 

The atmosphere in the gym was calm, everything was going smoothly for now. There were no big mistakes, no hesitation in their moves; years of training and dedication were clearly visible. 

Even though he hadn’t had too many opportunities to watch other teams play matches on college level, he could tell Todai’s volleyball team was strong, they were almost playing like professionals. 

Kageyama briefly wondered how his university’s team was doing. He had never seen Tsukuba’s team on a court. Were they also training this hard? How long did their practices take? Who was even on the team? Did any Karasuno guys play in there? Who was the coach of the team? 

Sudden loud steps getting closer to where he was sitting shook him out of his thought. 

“Yo, Tobio, any thoughts?” Nomura approached him looking at his scribblings on the clipboard. 

“Um, actually, yes...” he responded timidly before clearing his throat, “I’ve noticed some... um, space for improvement, I guess... But it’s not like the players are bad or anything because they’re amazing but there are some things they could work on... I m-mean, I’m not a specialist but I know just from my e-experience--” 

“Just spit it out Tobio, you have nothing to be afraid of. I just like to know everyone’s opinion,” the captain laughed and patted his shoulder.

“Okay, so I’ve noticed that Hiroki-san and Inoue-san and maybe Aoyama-san don’t really pay attention to their footwork. I mean, technically everything is correct, but their legs seem so stiff when they move before the jump that the whole block isn’t as powerful as it could be.” Nomura only nodded so Kageyama decided to continue. “And there are some players who struggle with the jump... I can’t tell the reason which causes those troubles but I guess it might be simply lack of strength in their legs.”

“Do you have their names written down?”

“Yes.”

“Then I’ll look over it later. Maybe we’ll suggest them some special training to check if we can raise their jumping ability. Anything else?”

Kageyama looked down at his notes, “Yes.” He looked nervously around himself and spoke again in a quiet voice, “I think Iwaizumi-san’s angle of how he’s leaning his upper body forward during the jump a little bit too much for his height...”

Nomura chuckled, “In other words, he is rather short as a blocker and he should keep his arms straight up?” Kageyama confirmed his words with a shy nod. “Well, I can agree with you on that but there’s no way in hell I would tell him that. He will be sullen for a week if you hint him he is short!” 

Kageyama snorted unintentionally, “I guess you’re right.” 

Both of them exchanged some more observations, not only regarding current but also previous practices; Nomura was listening to Kageyama carefully and absorbing all the information. 

However, despite the serious topic of their conversation, Nomura suddenly blurted a quite irrelevant question.

“Did you have a fight with Tooru?” 

Tobio chocked on his spit before replying. “Fight? Why?”

“Well, he’s glaring at you like crazy all the time today. Do you want me to talk with him about something?” Nomura asked with concern in his voice.

“What? No!” Kageyama looked around in confusion only to find a set of chocolate eyes literally glued to him. Oikawa in fact, wasn’t paying attention to the ball right now and was staring holes into Tobio’s head instead. His furrowed brows and pursed lips looked intimidating. Kageyama gulped slightly and tried to remember if he had done anything that could have pissed Oikawa off. 

When the other male noticed the questioning look on his face, he only clicked his tongue and turned his head away. 

Kageyama felt a soft pat on his head. “You two better make up,” Nomura whispered and walked away, leaving Tobio alone. 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * Todai = University of Tokyo (source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Tokyo)
> 
> Yoooo, a big hug for all of you who leaving those sweet comments and kudos (っ´∀｀)っ  
> I know this fic isn't great but it's fun for me to write xD 
> 
> Anyway, have a nice day~


	9. IX

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I just wanna announce that my updates from now will be unbeted.  
> Have a nice day~

Kageyama was changing back to his normal clothes after volleyball practice when he felt someone putting their arm over his shoulder. 

“Are you free this weekend, Kageyama?” the deep voice sounded next to his ear. 

Kageyama turned his head to see Kuroo close to his face, wearing his typical smirk. “Um, I guess so. Why?”

“Me and Terushima are going to climb Mount Mitake, I thought you might wanna tag along? What do you say?”

Kageyama cocked his head pensively; the offer seemed to be quite interesting; after all it had been a long time since he had an opportunity to breath some fresh air. He was ready to ask about the details when someone chimed in.

“Tobio has plans already.” Oikawa approached them and put his arm around Kageyama’s waist to drag him away from Kuroo, “He needs to study for his exam on Monday.” he said ignoring how Tobio uncomfortably shifted between two of his teammates.

Kuroo let out a disappointed ‘ohhhh’ and reluctantly let go of Kageyama, “But the weather is gonna be so nice, it’s just a one-day-long trip...”

Oikawa only shook his head, “Sorry, but I’m afraid it’s not possible...”

At those words Tobio faced Oikawa and glared at him not believing his ears. Why he was deciding for him? He had plenty of time to study, one day off wouldn’t hurt anyone.

But before he could say anything Kuroo gave him a sad smile and scratched his head, “I see, then maybe next time.” he said while putting on his jacket and turned to the door. “But let’s hit a Gym after your exam, Kageyama. Make sure to text me as soon as you’ll be free.”

Tobio nodded his head, “Sure! Can’t wait to work out with you again, Kuroo-san.” he replied a little bit too eagerly.

Kuroo blushed slightly and adjusted the strap of his bag, “Yeah, cool... Um, I’ll be leaving now. See ya.” 

When he disappeared behind the door Oikawa tightened his already firm grip on Tobio’s middle.

"You’re crushing my ribs.” Kageyama hissed trough his clenched teeth.

Oikawa looked at him absentmindedly with a blank expression on his face but when his eyes fell down to notice where his arm was he quickly let go of him and coughed awkwardly, “Uh, sorry, I didn’t mean to.”

Kageyama only arched his eyebrow at this action and unconcernedly got back to packing his clothes to his bag. 

When he was done and ready to leave Oikawa yanked the hem of his sleeve from the bench where he was tying his shoelaces, “Wait for me, I will walk you to the bus stop; we need to talk.”

Kageyama glanced shortly at Oikawa and slumped back on the bench next to him. He wondered what Oikawa wanted from him; did he want to talk about his manager work, had Tobio screwed something up and he’d found already a better replacement for him? Kageyama frowned at those thoughts; It wasn’t like he care about his position in Todai anyway but somehow he came to liking it within the past few days, it would be sad to leave it so soon. 

When Oikawa was ready, they left locker room together saying their goodbyes to the rest of the team. They walked in silence for the couple minutes; it reminded Kageyama how they’d met for the first time in Tokyo; their awkward encounter, walk to the park and a really short conversation. 

Suddenly Oikawa cleared his throat to get Tobio’s attention, “You know I’m really glad you managed to pass most of your classes now,” he started looking in the distance, “but you can’t let your guard down yet, Iwa-chan told me you still struggle with biomechanics problems.

Kageyama’s brows furrowed, “Ugh, but not the whole test is made of problems to resolve, there is a theoretical part too.” he tried to defend himself.

“Oh, so you mastered the theoretical part then.” Oikawa teased and looked at Kageyama, “You didn’t study much at home, did you?”

“T-that’s not true.” Tobio shouted offended, “I tried to do my best but there was so many things to learn and so little time...” his voice quietened.

Oikawa sighed dramatically, “Well, I see I have no choice.” Kageyama narrowed his eyes cautiously at his tone, “I promised to help you and since you're probably procrastinating all the time instead of studying when you’re on your own I think it would be better if someone kept an eye on you.”

“What does it mean?” Kageyama asked genuinely confused.

“That means,” Oikawa pointed his index finger at him, “you’re gonna study at my place this weekend, Tobio-chan.” he chirped cheerfully, “I’ll make sure you won’t leave your books even for two seconds.”  

“What?! That’s crazy! I need to have breaks!” Kageyama said stubbornly and crossed his arms. The idea of being buried with books for the whole weekend didn’t sound good for him. 

Oikawa rolled his eyes, “You’re such a kid,” he complained, “we’ll arrange some short breaks besides, you know, time for sleep and meals but still  you have only two days, you need to make most of it.”

Tobio shook his head in resignation; he knew how his ex-rival was crazy about hard work and there was probably no chance for escape for himself. “Okay, but if I collapse on the exam from exhaustion, it will be your fault.” he murmured quietly in the opposite direction from Oikawa. 

“Yeah, sure. But if you pass your exam will be my merit.” Oikawa replied cockily and checked his phone, “When will your bus arrive?” 

Kageyama looked at his own lock screen, “In six minutes.” 

“Okay, I’ll wait with you.” Oikawa declared and stood in front of vending machine next to the bus stop. 

Tobio blinked a few times confused, “Um, you don’t have to. It’s already late, you should be coming home--”

“Oh, is my presence that unwelcome?” he asked putting some coins into the machine.

“Of course not!” Kageyama quickly denied, “I just don’t want to trouble you all the time; you’re already doing so much for me, I don’t even know why...”

Oikawa pursed his lips and bent to get two cans out of machine. “It’s a part of our deal.” he muttered and handed one of the cans to Kageyama.

Tobio accepted the drink with simply ‘thank you’ and opened it while watching Oikawa unreadable expression. He was acting really weird today; was Kageyama’s exam worrying him that much? Even though, he had made a huge progress with Iwaizumi’s help in the past week. 

Deep in thoughts Kageyama didn’t notice his bus coming till it was right in front of him, “Oh, Oikawa-san, I’ll be going now, my bus is here.” he announced.

Oikawa turned his head, still with the mysterious look on his face, “Oh, of course, right--” he uttered abstractedly, “See you tomorrow then, Tobio-chan; don’t forget to bring your toothbrush.” 

Kageyama smiled and waved his hand in goodbye, “I won’t. Good night, Oikawa-san.” he responded just before the bus’ door closed. 


	10. X

As soon as Oikawa got home he quickly dialed Iwaizumi’s number and waited couple of seconds for him to pick up.

“I had the feeling you’ll call,” the voice sounded from the phone.

“Huh?” Oikawa surprised checked his screen to see if he was talking to the right person, “What do you mean?”

“You’ve always been acting strange towards Kageyama but today... well...”

“I don’t think I’m following...” Oikawa uttered unsurely.

Iwaizumi groaned, “I’m talking about that scene in locker room!” he shouted, “What the heck was that?”

Tooru furrowed his brows, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I just reminded him about his--”

“You didn’t let him answer on his own!” Iwaizumi cut in “What are you? His mom?” 

Oikawa couldn’t help but snorted but he quickly collected himself before his friend would start yelling at him again, “Relax, Iwa-chan. He knows I helped him make the right decision.” 

“I doubt that,” Iwaizumi replied quickly, “You start to stepping into his private life. I don’t care if you’re jealous about Kuroo or whatever but you’re not allowed to stop Kageyama from meeting him.”

“I think you’re imagining things,” Tooru denied coldly, “I couldn’t care less about Tobio’s private life. All I ever wanted, since I acknowledged his talent, was fighting beside or against him. Playing on professional level would be so much more interesting if he would be there, I can’t let him go again, I can’t let anyone stand in his way to career.” Iwaizumi was silent so Oikawa continued, “I dragged him to the team to help him remember what he is missing out. I know he still loves volleyball so it’s only a matter of time when he’ll be back on the court.” 

A tired sigh was heard at the end of the line, “Stop lying to yourself already... You know it’s not only about volleyball.”

Oikawa rolled his eyes annoyed seeing where this conversation was going, “Don’t act like you know me better than myself,” he snapped at his friend.

Iwaizumi didn’t answer right away, “You know what? Do whatever you like, I don’t care. I’m hanging up.” he hissed bitterly and ended the call before Oikawa could say anything. 

A few beeps sounded before his phone went silent completely.  

Tooru sat down in the kitchen and stared at the sink in front of him. He was looking at the silver tap shining in the darkness of his apartment with his mind completely blank. A minute passed before he took a deep breath and pour himself a glass of water. It was cold, nice and refreshing but it wasn’t what Oikawa wanted right now; annoyed with himself he opened the base cabinet and took out a few cans of beer. 

“ _Yeah, that should help me with the work tonight,”_ he thought and placed them beside his laptop.

\---

Kageyama looked down at the map that Oikawa had sent him this morning once again to check if he came to the right place. 

Apparently, every detail indicated that he was in front of his former senpai’s apartment so resigned he knocked lightly on the door. Oikawa, surprisingly opened him right away greeting him with a big yawn. He led Tobio to the small living area of his flat with a table standing in the centre of it and a spare futon folded by the wall. 

“Do you want to start with the coffee,” he asked still sounding sleepy and rubbed his eyes. 

Kageyama simply nodded and sat at the table; he was feeling quite strange in this new place. He started unpacking his books and notes when a loud curse was heard from the kitchen. 

In panic he rushed quickly to check on Oikawa just to see him standing still next to the spilled coffee. It wasn’t looked like anything dangerous happened so he let out a relived sigh. “Don’t yell like that. You scared me.”

The host glanced at him briefly and shrugged his arms, “Sorry, I guess I got up on the wrong side of the bed today.”

Kageyama looked at his lifeless figure, “You sure you don’t want me to go home--”

“No.” Oikawa replied firmly and got back to cleaning the mess he’d made. 

Tobio confused helped to wash the dirty countertop; he tried to make a small talk while they were cleaning but Oikawa remind quiet. It wasn’t like him not to blabbing about something irrelevant. 

When they were done Oikawa headed to his room while Kageyama was supposed to study in the living room; they agreed to make a break in a few hours for a dinner so Tobio decided not to waste time and got to the work.  

At first he tried to solve some problems on his own but after an hour of continuous fails he gave up and reached for his textbook. He was reading the 4th chapter when it started raining; small droplets were hitting on the outside windowsill making a pleasant noise. Kageyama hummed content and looked at the view trough the window; the strong wind was bending some trees outside once to the left, once to the right. Tobio was wondering how many branches will break by its force when he felt some weight placed on his head.

“Why are you spacing out?” Oikawa had his chin resting on the top of Kageyama’s head waiting for he answer. He didn’t sound angry or annoyed, it was rather a type of question threw out of boredom. 

“It looks pretty outside,” Tobio replied frankly, “this kind of weather make me feel at peace.” 

"I see," Oikawa chuckled and straightened up, “Okay, get up, it’s time to make a dinner.” 

Kageyama nodded and they headed together to the kitchen.

Their attempt at cooking was a catastrophe; the constant talking or arguing resulted in two burned fishes, over-cooked rice, broken glass and a few cuts. Surly, Oikawa was the one to complain the most when he was looking for some  plasters for his guest. 

“I told you I can do it myself but no, Master chef Tobio knew better how to chop the vegetables.”

Kageyama huffed narrowing his eyes, “The difference in sizes you chopped them into was too big! If you tried to cook them, some of them would end up over-cooked while some still would be raw.” However, Oikawa not interested in what the other male had to say spilled some peroxide on Tobio’s cuts making him hiss trough his clenched teeth. “Shit! Warn me the next time you do this!” 

After taking care of their wounds, eating dinner and washing up, both of males slumped exhausted on the floor. They were joking and bickering for awhile  before Oikawa’s expression got serious and Tobio felt himself worry. He rolled on his stomach to get closer and have a better look at the person next to him. 

“What’s wrong?” he asked cautiously and cocked his head.

Oikawa sighed loudly, “Nothing, I just don’t wanna got back to my work. I feel sick every time I try to write an another paragraph for the article.” 

Relived it wasn’t anything important, Kageyama hummed softly, “What is it about?”

“Living clothing,” was the response which made Kageyama choke on his own spit. The funny view however encouraged Oikawa to continue, “it’s about self-ventilating sportswear which uses natto bacteria.” he explained then described in details how did it work. Tobio’s eyes went wide as he was listening attentively to the other male; in fact he was  genuinely fascinated by the invention and was literally interrupting Oikawa every two seconds to ask a question. They were talking like this for the rest of the afternoon before one of them realized it was already dark outside. Reluctantly, Oikawa rushed to his room to got back to writing his article and Kageyama decided to take advantage of opportunity and have a quick shower. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [living clothing: [source 1](https://www.wired.com/2015/10/this-living-clothing-morphs-when-you-sweat/) and [ source 2](https://www.rt.com/news/320057-natto-bacteria-ventilating-sportswear/) ]  
> \---  
> Thank you for all those kudos and nice comments <3 !!!! 
> 
> Have a nice day~


	11. XI

The rest of the weekend went smoothly. Tooru, for the first time, finished his article long before his deadline while Kageyama managed to understand how to resolve some of biomechanics problems. 

The only thing that bothered Oikawa was the fact that Iwaizumi still ignored his texts and calls; it wasn’t like him to stay mad for longer than one day. What if he  would refuse to spike his tosses on today practice? Or, what if he would cancel their plans to go shopping on Saturday?  Tooru worried his lip and started clicking his pen nervously when he heard familiar voice.

“Oikawa? What are you doing here? The lecture has already ended.”

“Ah, Ren-chan,” he turned to face his friend from the course, “I was just reading my notes for the tomorrow test.”

“Huh,” the other male came closer and looked over his shoulder, “those are quite spectacular notes...” he pointed at almost blank papers in front of Tooru, “is that invisible ink or what?”

Oikawa shoved his arm playfully, “Very funny, Ren-chan. At least I have some kind of notes, unlike you.” he teased and planned to say something else when he felt his phone vibrating; a new text was received. 

**From: Kageyama Tobio  
Subject: (none)**

**Hello, Oikawa-san.  
I just wanted to ask if you’re perhaps free tonight?**

“Oh,” Ren gasped, “someone is asking you out?” he grinned obscenely at Oikawa waiting for some kind of response. 

However, Tooru only stared blankly at the screen before typing out the reply.

**To: Kageyama Tobio  
Subject: I’M SORRY**

**I’m sorry but I’m busy today. I hope you understand!  
See you at practice, Tobio-chan~**

Ren snorted bitterly behind his backs, “You’re not even going to explain yourself?”

“Why would I? He knows and understands that I have a lot of things to do,” Oikawa responded still looking at his message, “Besides, he’s not some kind of whiny girl who needs a constant attention.”

“Hm, very interesting.” Ren remarked with a significant hum. 

Tooru stiffened at the provoking tone in his friend’s comment and unconsciously clenched his teeth, “What do you mean by that?”

Ren only threw him an innocent glance and turned on his heel to escape the room. Oikawa was ready to call after him when he stopped in his tracks by the door-frame, “Nothing. that just sounded like you two have a quite special relationship.” He replied seriously before his smirk crept back on his face, “and I didn’t expected something like this from you.”

Tooru only rolled his eyes at those words and the other man with a cheerful good bye left the room. When his footsteps were no longer heard, he took out his phone again to delete the draft and typed out instead,

**To: Kageyama Tobio  
Subject: (none)**

**Tonight I need to study for my tomorrow test, but for the rest of the week I have nothing important planned.**

The answer popped out immediately after Oikawa sent his own message.  

**From: Kageyama Tobio  
Subject: (none)**

**So, what about Thursday then? And should I bring the clothes you lent me on weekend on today practice or can it wait?**

Tooru smiled despite himself.

**To: Kageyama Tobio  
Subject: (none)**

**Aww, you like walking around in my clothes that much? You can keep them as long as you want then.  
And Thursday is cool, btw. **

The reply was instant.

**From: Kageyama Tobio  
Subject: (none)**

**I WILL BRING THEM TODAY.**

\---

Kageyama felt his how hot his cheeks got with just some silly text from Oikawa; he wasn’t familiar with this kind of reaction.

“ _It was just Oikawa-san so whatever. He has always tended to act a little bit weird sometimes.”_ he thought and automatically tried to hid his trembling lips in his hand. For some reason a shy smile was creeping onto his face. 

“Kageyama-kun, everything’s okay?” a quiet voice sounded next to him, “Your face is red. Do you have a fever?” Yachi reached her hand to check his forehead but he gently stopped her in midway. 

“No, I’m fine, Yachi. But thank you.” 

She gave him doubtful look but smiled nevertheless. 

Tobio got back to making himself a sandwich; it wasn’t the nourishing lunch that could efficiently fill his stomach but any snack would do right now. Looking for ingredients in a fridge, Kageyama was thinking where he could take Oikawa on Thursday. Now, when he had been done with all his exams he wanted to treat his tutor to something nice; even if Oikawa claimed that his manager job was enough to return a favor or speaking accurately - to fulfill his obligation.

Kageyama scrolled down on his phone past multiple cafes, bars and restaurants when something caught his eye. 

“Yacchan! Do you have a moment?” he yelled form the kitchen to his flatmate who was in her room. 

Soft steps were heard before she appeared behind him, “I was doing my assignment but it can wait,” Yachi entered the room and sat on kitchen stool by the door, “What’s going on?”

Tobio handed her his phone, “I’m looking for a place when I can go with Oikawa-san. Look at this and tell me what do you think.”

The girl looked at the screen, scrolled down past some photos and scanned quickly the text that was below them, “Oh, this place sounds interesting!” she beamed at him, “and looks very peaceful and quite. I think it would be a good choice for a date,” she said and met Kageyama’s confused gaze, “I mean, a good choice for causal meeting too!”

Kageyama cleared his throat awkwardly, “I’m glad you think so,” he took a bite of his sandwich and leaned against the fridge, “I couldn’t find anything more suitable. I was worrying if I would try to invite him to cafe or something he would just laugh in my face and leave.”

“Tobio...” Yachi called him softly, “he wouldn’t do that. He is not that cruel.”

Kageyama looked away and chewed his lip for a moment before replying, “Yeah, I know but still I can’t get used to it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading~ 
> 
> (and a big hug for all the lovely people who left some comments and kudos ^^ )


	12. XII

“Tobio, are you sure you read the address right?” Oikawa asked in a complaining tone scanning all the buildings around the street. They were looking for the place Tobio wanted to check out for an hour now; the sun set long time ago and it was getting colder.  “I see only some stores around here...”

Kageyama looked down at his phone nervously once again, “It should be just around the corner.” he muttered turning left. He knew he should have visit this place earlier to avoid this kind of situation but because of his schedule he hadn’t have a chance. Now, he could only pray quietly that this wouldn’t worse Oikawa’s mood. He was walking down the side street watching the surroundings carefully before an excited gasp left his mouth. “Ah, finally! Oikawa-san, it’s here!”

Tooru stopped in his track to look at the building in front of him, it wasn’t very different from many other restaurants he saw in his life. Without a second thought he opened he door and let Tobio enter first; his ears were immediately filled with some nu-metal music but when looked inside his eyes went wide. “Is it a--”

“Yes, it’s a ramen restaurant,” Kageyama confirmed Oikawa’s assumption and smiled at his surprised expression. 

Tooru blinked a few times, still in a slight shock. The interior of the restaurant they were in looked juts like a run-down factory from II World War but with a large crowd sitting inside at the clean, white tables. The bare walls were covered in faded graffiti and the potted plants on the windowsills grew wildly, climbing up the walls till the ceiling. Oikawa lifted his head to see what was above them just to meet the shining pair of eyes. “Eeeeek!--”

“Ah...”, Tobio looked up as well, “it must be the famous fake owl that scares customers!” he explained and grinned at Oikawa’s scared face

The innocent remark made Tooru’s eye twitch, “What a psycho put there this awful bird...” he grumbled to himself glaring at the fake animal placed on the pipes running across the ceiling. 

“She’s not awful!”

An offended cry sounded just behind them making the both males jump.

“She’s called Aveline and she’s our good-luck mascot,” Kageyama turned around hearing this familiar voice, “so better be nice to her if you wanna get some tasty ramen here.”

Tobio’s jaw dropped, “Bokuto-san?”

“Nice to see you in Tokyo, Kageyama-kun,” yellow irises glimmered “how it comes I haven’t seen you at the court this year yet?”

Tobio nervously scratched his neck, “Uh, it’s complicated,” he muttered trying to find suitable words. It wasn’t the best time and place to have this conversation, not to mention he wanted avoid the ‘giving-up on volleyball’ topic. “I just joined the team recently,” he glanced at Bokuto and his excited expression only made him feel worse, “...as a manager.” 

As Kageyama feared a dead silence fell between them. Oikawa was watching his former kōhai worrying his lip; he looked like he wanted to say something else or to explain something, but more seconds passed and his lips were already pressed shut, eyes glued to the ground.

Bokuto hummed friendly and patted Kageyama’s shoulder, “I heard that from Kuroo, congratulation!”, he beamed, “but we will talk next time, I have to go back to work, have a nice meal!” he turned on his heel with a tray under his arm before he looked back and flashed Oikawa a smile, “and you too Todai’s setter!”

“I have a name, Koutarou-chan!” Oikawa yelled after him but smiled nonetheless, “I should have known that mascot was his work. In Tokyo there’s only a one person who has unmeasured love for owls without any sense of fashion; I bet those horrific lamps are also his idea.”

Tobio giggled amused, “I didn’t know you two are such a good friends.”

“He’s the best Kuroo’s pal after all so of course I know him well... Do you remember how my mirror in the bathroom is cracked in the corner?” Kageyama nodded slowly, “It’s a result of their ‘bath-karaoke’ with Terushima that happened about a year ago at one of their many sleepovers. I was so pissed then they were apologizing to me on their knees,” Tooru smirked, “ahhh those were such a good times... But anyway, it was when we really started to get along, you know, they toned down, I laid back a little bit...”

Tobio watched Oikawa looking in the distance, he seemed to get a slightly nostalgic when he was talking about his friendship with the crazy trio. This soft side of his ex-rival made Kageyama experience the warm, pleasant sensation spreading inside his chest, he reached to place a hand on Oikawa’s back, “That’s nice to hear, they’re good guys.” he beamed and took a step, “But let’s look for a free table, okay?”

Tooru looked at Kageyama’s smile surprised and blinded a few times; he had seen Tobio’s lips in many various roles: as a casual smile, as a cheeky smirk, as a excited grin, as a reassuring expression or as a victorious beam. But this, this one was strangely affectionate, it almost made his heart skip a beat but before he could process this whole new expression he faced, Kageyama was already by the free table in the corner of the restaurant, taking off his coat.

“Come on, Oikawa-san! I’m hungry!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the lovely comments and kudos <3 
> 
> I wish you all a Happy New Year °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°


	13. XIII

Oikawa sat at the table and took a menu Kageyama handed him. He expected the front page to match the wild style of the whole restaurant but surprisingly he held in his hands a little yellow book that looked like it was written on a typewriter. 

“Honestly,” he looked at the interior once again, “this is quite a smart idea to make a ramen restaurant in the place that looks like ruins from the middle of the XX century.” Tobio nodded clearly not listening. “It’s like reaching to the history of ramen, reaching to the times when it become popular... I must say I’m impressed, however...”

Kageyama averted his eyes from the menu, “However...?”

“I thought we would go to more peaceful place where we can talk...”

The surprised chuckle escaped Tobio’s mouth, “Well, speaking the truth that was the plan and I even picked up this place thinking about this... It was looking calm and interesting,” he winced when the scream parts came it the song that was playing in the background, “but apparently the reviews on the internet skipped some important details.” 

“I guess so,” Oikawa smiled in agreement and looked at his own menu, “But the next time you’re taking me to the volleyball-themed cafe!” 

“What?”

“You heard me. I’ve always wanted to go to one but I had no no one to come with me as a company. Iwa-chan said they’re usually too cute for his own liking and he would feel awkward sitting there with me.” Tooru sighed and rested his face on his hand. “So pleaseee. I will buy ice-cream dessert if you want.” 

Kageyama faked a disgruntled noise, “If you insist...” 

His answer made Oikawa’s face light up; it was the sight he was more and more familiar with but still he appreciated seeing him like that. He was looking like a happy dog who got a bone. After some time spending flipping trough the pages of menus and arguing which toppingis better, both males placed their orders exhausted like they’d just finished a battle. 

Oikawa at first tried to be nice and considering Tobio’s budged he’d picked up the cheapest option, which was Shoyu Ramen. He’d been chirping about how he loves it and how it brings his middle-school memories when Kageyama’d rolled his eyes and told him to order whatever he likes because Shoyu Ramen is a crap and there’s no way in hell someone is actually enjoying this. Tooru deeply offended had tired to defend his choice since he _actually likes_ Shoyu Ramen but his childish-self had taken over and he decided on Tonkotsu Ramen with a lot of extra topping. He’d hoped to annoy Tobio a little bit but to his disappointment, Kageyama’d only smiled in approval and came back to flipping trough his own menu. 

When their orders arrived, Kageyama quickly thanked for food and dug in so enthusiastically that Oikawa had to tell him to slow down. 

“I only know how to give a CPR, so please don’t choke in my presence.” He joked while admiring his own steaming bowl full of the hot soup; even if it wasn’t Shoyu Ramen he felt somehow nostalgic, remembering how third years in Kitagawa Daiichi had used to visit a ramen shop after volleyball practice now and then. 

Tobio at the other hand was utterly focused on eating, “Don’t worry, I know my limits so I’ll be fine.” he responded after swallowing a big portion of his food not even looking at Oikawa,

Tooru deadpanned at him and only shook his head before he got back to his ramen , “I think someone needs to talk to your parents about your manners soon, Tobio...” he remarked but his comment was completely ignored. “Speaking of your parents...”

Kageyama finalny looked up from his bowl with a mouth full of noodles and shiny lips from the soup; this look took Tooru aback but he quickly recollected himself. 

Blinking a few times he continued, “S-speaking of your parents, Tobio... When was exactly the last time you visited them? Have you been in Miyagi lately?”

Kageyama raised his eyebrows surprised but adverted his gaze as soon as the little blush came onto his face, “I haven’t...” he cleared his throat awkwardly, “The last time we saw each other was in March...”

Tooru sucked in his breath, “You haven’t visited them even once since the year begun?” Tobio nodded in affirmation, “Not even during the summer vacation?” 

“No.” 

They look at each other in silence for a couple of seconds; Kageyama felt small under Oikawa’s disapproving gaze. For the first time the browns eyes were scolding him in a way a proper senpai would probably do. The guilt that he started to feel in his chest was getting heavier with every second. He licked his lips nervously and finally this movement made Oikawa look away. 

He sighed dramatically, “Oh Tobio... I don’t even know what to say...” 

“Maybe let’s go back to eatin--” Kageyama tried to suggest.

“No,” Oikawa leaned close with a cheerful smile, “let’s visit Miyagi next weekend!” 

Tobio clearly not happy with the idea titled his head, “I don’t think it’s a good idea... Do we have a time for this? 

“Honestly... No, we don’t.” Tooru replied with a hesitation in his voice, “But every week is busy so it doesn’t matter if we go now or next month.” Kageyama still didn’t look convinced, “Oh, come on Tobio! The sooner the better!” 

Kageyama groaned making a pouty face but believing that Oikawa probably wanted the best for him, he eventually agreed. After all, Yachi was telling him exactly the same for the past few months but she didn’t have a patience for his stubborn-self.

When both of them finished their bowls or ramen and Tobio paid the bill, they exited the loud, crowded place with a content sigh. It was middle of the night and streets were looking so welcoming for a peaceful walk; Kageyama looked at Oikawa who smiled back. 

Without a conversation they were wandering around looking at window displays and throwing some ridiculous comments now and then. When they reached the metro station, Tobio stopped in his tracks and tugged Oikawa’s coat gently. 

“You can sleep at my place you know,” Kageyama muttered and Tooru blinked surprised at this offer, “It’s closer.”

“Are you sure you’re flat-mate wouldn’t mind?” 

“No, she wouldn’t mind.”

Oikawa was stroking his chin deep in thoughts before he took a breath and replied, “Okay, but you need to wake me up for my morning classes.”

“No problem,” Kageyama assured him flashing a genuine smile and once again Oikawa’s heart almost skip a beat. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a few days off so finally I could sit and wrote this chapter. 
> 
> Anyway, thanks for reading! And a big hug for everyone of you who left comments and kudos <3 
> 
> Have a nice day / night !


End file.
